Barcelona & Madrid: Top 5 cities hosting most congresses in the world

The capital of Catalonia has figured in the top 5 of the ICCA ranking for 15 years.

Barcelona is again amongst the top 5 cities in the world holding most congresses. In 2014, the city hosted 182 congresses and meetings, according to a ranking published by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). Paris leads the 2014 ICCA classification, followed by Vienna, Madrid, Berlin and Barcelona. The association, which publishes its ranking every year, highlighted that there have not been any significant changes in the classification compared to other years.

“Barcelona is again amongst the ICCA’s Top 5 ranking, now for the 15th consecutive year. As such, the city is consolidating its global leadership position. Last year we increased the number of meetings compared to 2013 and the outlook for the future is very positive, with 223 congresses confirmed until 2021,” says Christoph Tessmar, director of Barcelona Convention Bureau, a specialised programme at Turisme de Barcelona. The ranking produced by the ICCA only includes congresses that have a minimum of 50 participants and rotate between three countries or more. This means that congresses that only take place in Barcelona and do not rotate between other destinations, like the Mobile World Congress, are not counted in this ranking.